The Geologist activity badge is a fun and
exciting time for the boys as they explore the outdoors for that perfect
rock sample, explore what happens when you crush rocks or create a miniature
volcano. The hands-on activities will encourage the boys to become budding
rock hounds and explorers.

Place the soda bottle in the pan and
shape dirt around the bottle to form the volcano, taking care not to get
dirt near the bottle's opening.

Pour the tablespoon of baking soda into
the bottle. Color the vinegar with the food coloring, pour into the bottle
and watch what happens!

Baking soda reacting with the vinegar
produces carbon dioxide gas. The gas builds up pressure and forces the
liquid out of the top of the bottle, much like hot gases force the lava from
a volcano.

Make a Geyser

Materials: A funnel, a large
coffee can as tall as the funnel, and some plastic tubing about one yard
long.

Directions:

Fill the can with water and set the
funnel spout side up inside the can.

Place the end of the tubing under the rim
of the funnel. Gently blow into the other end of the tubing. The air being
blown into the funnel forces air bubbles up the stem of the funnel. As the
air moves upward. it pushes water out the top.

Geysers are funnel-shaped cracks under
the earth's surface. When water in the lower cracks is heated to boiling,
bubbles of steam rise to the surface. The geyser erupts when the rising
steam bubbles force out the water trapped in the top.

Make an
Earthquake

Put mud into a disposable cake pan. Let
it dry.

Now flex the pan at opposite sides.

The cracked, shifted, jagged and broken
pieces are an example of plate tectonics or the premise behind the formation
of the continents.

To demonstrate the strength of an
earthquake, fold a full sheet of newspaper seven or eight times. Now try to
tear the newspaper apart. It doesn't take much effort to tear one sheet (or
one layer of earth), but it takes a tremendous force to tear several layers.

Make Your Own
Fossils

The shells and bones of many prehistoric
animals have been preserved as casts and molds. To make your own fossil, you
will need a small cardboard box, some clay, plaster and a small clam or
other seashell.

First cover the bottom of the cardboard
box with the modeling clay to the depth of one inch. The clay represents the
soft mud found on the ancient sea floor.

Now press the shell firmly into the clay.
Lift the shell out carefully so that a clear imprint remains. You now have
produced the mold. Next, mix a small amount of plaster with water in a paper
cup. Stir it with a wooden stick or spoon. When the plaster is the
consistency of thick cream, till the mold. After the plaster has thoroughly
hardened, carefully remove it from the mold. You now have a cast of the
original shell.

Compare the original shell with the
plaster cast. Notice that even some of the most delicate markings on the
shell have been preserved in the plaster.

This same technique is used in
reconstructing the shells of long-dead animals. In addition, casts are
especially useful in working with fossil footprints. When a track is filed
with plaster, the resulting cast will clearly show the size and shape of the
foot of the animal making the track.

Geologists use a 1-10 system called Mohs'
scale to estimate rock hardness It works like this: A mineral will scratch
anything that is as hard as or softer than itself. The chart below combines
Mohs' scale with some around-the-house items that are about equal to the
mineral hardness scale. You might want to collect these items for a hardness
kit.

Hardness

Mineral

Scratcher

These
household items can be used to test for hardness

SOFT

1

Talc

Soft Lead
Pencil

2

Gypsum

Blackboard
Chalk

3

Calcite

Copper Penny

4

Fluorite

Brass

5

Apatite

Carpenterís
Nail

6

Orthoclase

Steel File

7

Quartz

Flint
Sandpaper

8

Topaz

(None)

9

Corundum

Emery
Sandpaper

HARD

10

Diamonds

Carborundum
Sandpaper

King of the Ore

Baltimore Area Council

The boys stand in a circle. The game
begins with the first boy naming something in the house that is made of an
ore or metal and its use. If
he is correct, he becomes King and
can stand in the center of the circle. The next boy in the circle then tries
to name something in the house made of ore or metal and its use. If he is correct, he can then stand in the
center. If he is incorrect, play moves to the next
boy in the circle. Play continues until everyone has had a chance to play.

VOLCANOES

By Barb Stephens

Circle Ten Council

Read the definitions, then label the diagram.

ash cloud - the cloud of ash that forms in the air
after some volcanic eruptions

conduit - a passage through which magma (molten
rock) flows in a volcano